In almost all applications, it is desirable to seal the gap between a pipe or conduit and the surface through which the pipe or conduit passes. This is most commonly done by injecting a liquid such as caulk into the gap and then covering the gap with a decorative escutcheon. Several disadvantages of this method are addressed by this invention.
When a sealing product such as caulk is used, any change that needs to be made to the pipe or conduit requires that the caulk be removed, usually involving considerable hand labor and possible damage to the pipe or conduit.
Pipe escutcheons are known in the prior art. Known prior art includes: U.S. Pat. No. 4,560,083, U.S. D356,362, U.S. Pat. No. 1,278,895, U.S. Pat. No. 1,835,155, U.S. Pat. No. 6,070,928, U.S. Pat. No. 4,517,408, U.S. Pat. No. 4,407,023, U.S. Pat. No. 4,627,647, U.S. Pat. No. 5,504,276, U.S. Pat. No. 6,211,465, U.S. Pat. No. 4,656,689 and U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,589. Bolette in U.S. Pat. No. 6,161,589 discloses a device for sealing the hole around a pipe. While this device does seal the hole around a pipe, it suffers several disadvantages. The very low profile severely limits any support the device can provide to the pipe. The snap design used to engage the device around the pipe cannot be adjusted and so the gasketed seal cannot be adjusted to account for variations in smoothness of the pipe surface. The device uses an adhesive to attach it to the mounting surface. Adhesive mounting severely limits the type of surfaces that the device would work on (i.e. smooth). It also severely limits the ability to remove and reuse the device. Adhesive mounting also limits the amount of support the device can provide. Adhesive mounting also limits the weather conditions under which the device would perform successfully. Adhesive mounting also prevents the use of a gasket that can be compressed between the device and the mounting surface, as in Koreis et al (U.S. Pat. No. 5,481,790.
While the aforementioned devices fulfill their intended purposes the aforementioned patents do not disclose an adjustable and reusable escutcheon that seals with compressed gaskets at both the pipe and mounting surface and supports a pipe or conduit that can be surface mounted. As such, the present invention substantially departs from the designs of the prior art, and in so doing provides a device that is adjustable and reusable that seals and supports a pipe or conduit.